The brewery posted this message on its Facebook page on Friday afternoon: "Bad news folks, we've been told that we are not allowed to open this weekend. We will be working diligently throughout the weekend to insure that we can be fully operational next week and can finally get down to the real reason for this business: making and serving quality beer!"

The Ohio Beercast, a podcast based in Cincinnati, is trying to identify the best Ohio-made beers for its "Fantasy Ohio Beer League." Basically, the podcast is seeking nominations to create a list of 32 Ohio-made beers that will be voted on by listeners until there is one beer left standing.

"So what is the point of this?" the website says. "To crown the best beer in Ohio? No, beauty is in the tongue of the beholder. We want to have fun and find all those little beers hidden out there in Ohio and create the ultimate taste list for everyone to travel down."

D'Agnese's at White Pond in Akron will hold a special beer pairing dinner at 6:30 p.m. July 10 featuring foods from area farms and beers from Thirsty Dog Brewing Co., The Brew Kettle and Fat Head's Brewery.

-- The website Drink Up Columbus has a profile of the Staas Brewing Co., a nanobrewery that hopes to open next month in Delaware. “There’s a lot of advantages to small batches that I really like,” co-owner Liz Staas told the website. “We plan to have a rotating tap and each month we plan to put new stuff out. We can get pretty experimental with it." To read the full story, click here.

Catawba Island Brewing Co., a new production brewery in Northwest Ohio, will open its tasting room Friday, according to its Facebook page. There will be four beers available: a tripel, double India pale ale, Scottish ale and wit, co-owner Shad Gunderson told me earlier this week.

Catawba Island will be open from 5 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. The hours will be expanded later.

-- The website Examiner.com reports on North High Brewing Co. in Columbus boldly proclaiming in its headline: "In only six months, North High Brewing has become a craft beer heavy hitter." To read the full story, click here.

The World Beer Festival in Cleveland on July 13 will feature a special presentation on the "Sumerian Beer Project" undertaken by Great Lakes Brewing Co., organizers announced. Brewery co-owner Pat Conway will talk about Great Lakes' effort to replicate a 5,000-year-old Sumerian beer using only clay vessels and a wooden spoon.

His presentation is part of the Art of Beer Village at the event. The project -- which recently was featured in the New York Times -- was inspired by a visit to the University of Chicago, Conway's alma mater.

-- The Associated Press reports on Cincinnati's efforts to step up alcohol tourism. "Most people don't know that Cincinnati was one of the biggest brewing centers in the country," Steve Hampton, a local architect and executive director of the nonprofit Brewery District Community Urban Development Corp., told the news service. "That's something we've not done a good job of sharing, and we want to remedy that and use it to revitalize the neighborhood." To read the full story, click here. To rea

The beer will be a limited release, available at the music festival. Bunbury Bavarian Pale Ale showcases the "characteristics of a traditional ale, while boasting the flavors and aromas of German noble hops," the brewer said in a news release. "The malty backbone imparted by Pilsner and Munich malts is accented by delicate floral and fruity notes, thanks to a generous late kettle hop addition and dry-hopping. The crisp, refreshing result makes Christian Moerlein's Bunbury Bavarian Pale Ale a headliner at every venue."

"Bunbury Music Festival has already become one of the must-see concerts in Cincinnati and in the country, so we're excited to partner with them and create a special beer in honor of this great summer event," Christian Moerlein Brewing Chief Executive Officer Greg Hardman said in a prepared statement.

Fred Lee and his friends were determined to launch a brewery in Columbus and stop working for the man. So much so that they figured they had to start a religion first. Seriously.

See, they surmised that they would brew on a nano system, producing only five-gallon batches at a time. Heck with that big brewery stuff. But the only way they could make a living on a venture like that would be to not to pay taxes.

Hoppin' Frog Brewery in Akron has officially opened its tasting room. Owner and brewmaster Fred Karm sent out an email announcing the news Saturday. The tasting room will be open from noon to midnight today (June 22), he said.

"We will start out the week with Tower Tuesdays, this and every Tuesday! We will establish fun events like this, that will make your visit a really good time. But for today, stop on by and get a taste of our beer and food at The Tasting Room!"

Listermann Brewing Co. in Cincinnati is hosting a Cincinnati-only beer festival on July 27 featuring low-alcohol and session beers. Volksfest will include beers only from local breweries. The word Volk in German means people, and local brewers are joining together "once again to show our customers just how much they mean to us," Listermann said in a news release.

The following breweries are participating: Blank Slate, Fifty West, Christian Moerlein, Rock Bottom, Rivertown, Mt. Carmel, MadTree, Cellar Dweller, Wiedemann, Quaff Bros., Rhinegeist, Triple Digit and Listermann. Some of the brewers are making exclusive beers for the event, which also will include live music and food vendors.

All About Beer Magazine this week announced the brewery lineup for its World Beer Festival Cleveland, which takes place July 13 at the North Coast Harbor. The lineup features 64 breweries, including many from Ohio.

"We are thrilled about the great selection of local breweries attending, as well as the many breweries from around the country and world," magazine publisher and festival producer Daniel Bradford said in a prepared statement.

Buckeye Brewing Co. owner and brewer Garin Wright took a chance years ago and decided to participate in the first-ever Ohio Brew Week in Athens. He recalls the college town, home of Ohio University, being dominated by Coors Light and Budweiser drinkers, and not much going on.

Oh how things have changed. Athens now has a vibrant craft beer scene and it will be on full display starting Friday for the eighth annual Ohio Brew Week. The nine-day festival focuses on Ohio craft beer and provides one of the best opportunities in the state for beer drinkers to sample Ohio-made brews and meet brewers. The festival has become a premier beer event in Ohio, Wright says.

Upland Brewing Co. from Bloomington, Ind., will hold several tastings around Ohio -- and in Kentucky just across the river from Cincinnati -- as its beer become more widely available in the state. Here's a rundown of the events:

-- Wednesday (June 19) at 6:30 p.m.: Tap Invasion at The Jury Room in Columbus. There will be five different Upland brands available and people can keep the glass.

Toxic Brew Co., a new production brewery and tasting room in Dayton's Oregon District, will hold its official grand opening June 28 and 29. "It’s been a long time coming and we’re ready to unleash it to the world," co-owner and brewer Shane Juhl said.

The brewery, which features a seven-barrel brewhouse, initially will be open from 5 p.m. to midnight Fridays and 3 p.m. to midnight Saturdays. Later, it will expand to three or four days a week and start distirbuting its draft beer, Juhl said.

Because there are so many outstanding beer stories related to Ohio today, here's a second "Beer story sampler:"

-- The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Rhinegeist Brewing, a new brewery in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood plans to open June 29. The brewery will focus on West Coast-style beers. “I think there’s a big chunk of people who are craving this style of beer,” co-owner Bob Bonder tells the newspaper. “The trick is, it needs to be local because freshness with hops is so important." To read the full story, click here.

The Fishers Foods grocery store at 8100 Cleveland Ave. in Plain Township will hold a "Domestic Beer" tasting from 1 to 4 p.m. June 29. The tasting will feature more than 20 beers. Samples will be 25 cents each.

The project will follow Lance on a 3,000-mile road trip as he visits breweries, meets brewers and fulfills a lifelong dream to write a book about the history and culture of American beer. The documentary will chronicle Lance’s journey as he faces his social fears and phobias and spends nearly three months away from home.

-- The Dayton Daily News reports on the MillerCoors brewery in Trenton, which produces 9 million barrels of MillerCoors brands each year. “It is unfortunate people do not know we are here,” Denise A. Quinn, brewery vice president, tells the newspaper. “They don’t know that we are a good community citizen.” To read the full story, click here. To

Each year, the magazine asks readers to vote for up to 20 of their favorite beers in an online poll. As in recent years, India pale ales and double India pale ales shined, making up eight of the top 10 beers.

UPDATE: This event has been canceled.... The United Way hopes to reschedule in the future.

The United Way of Portage County will hold a five-course beer pairing dinner at 5:30 p.m. June 27 at Ray's Place in Kent. The event will feature six beers from six different craft breweries. In a twist, the beers won't be announced until the night of the dinner.

-- The Akron Beacon Journal reports on a Knox County man who built a brewery in a treehouse. Well, not an actual brewery, but a bar. The treehouse will appear on the new television series Treehouse Masters on Animal Planet. To read the full story, click here.

The website Dayton Most Metro reports that Lock 27 Brewing, a new brewpub in Centerville, plans to open June 21. The Lock 27 beers, though, won't be available until about three weeks after the opening, the site says.

"Craft beers, made in-house will rotate seasonally. They will be brewed one or two barrels at a time. With small batches, there are no commitments and this will allow for a constantly changing, and evolving brewery," Dayton Most Metro says.

Wooster Fire Fighters Local 764 and the Wooster Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association have teamed up with the JAFB Wooster Brewery for a fundraiser to help a woman who was critically burned in an arson.

The event is 4 to 9 p.m. Tuesday (June 18) at the brewery, which will donate $1 for every beer sold to the Nicole L. Reischman Benevolent Fund at First Merit Bank. There will be free appetizers, 50/50 raffles, door prizes and silent raffles.

Hoppin' Frog Brewery on Friday released the latest version of its award-winning B.O.R.I.S. The Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout. Exclusively available at the Akron brewery, Barrel Aged B.O.R.I.S. Bairille Aois was aged in Irish whiskey barrels. Check out the video of owner and brewmaster Fred Karm talking about the beer while standing in the soon-to-open Hoppin' Frog tasting room.

And it should come as no surprise to knowledgeable beer fans that it’s Bourbon County Stout, a 14.5 percent imperial beast that has earned a "World Class" ranking from the sometimes persnickety reviewers on BeerAdvocate.com.

Avery Brewing Co. from Boulder, Colo., will take over the draft taps at the Acme Fresh Market in Montrose from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. June 21. The following beers will be available: Joe's Premium American Pilsner, White Rascal, Salvation, The Reverand, India Pale Ale and Twenty XX India Pale Ale.

Samples will cost 25 cents or 50 cents, depending on the beer. Growlers will be available for sale.

Scene Magazine this week announced details about its fifth annual Ale Fest, which takes place from 1 to 5 p.m. July 20 at Lincoln Park in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood. The one-day event will feature more than 100 beers.

General admission tickets are $20 until July 1, then rise to $30 or $35 at the gate. Patrons will receive an eight-ounce cup and 10 drink tickets. VIP tickets, which allow you to enter at noon and have access to special beers, are $55 in advance or $75 at the gate.

Ohio’s craft beer industry certainly is growing by leaps and bounds — especially in Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton — but make no mistake that there’s one reason, and one reason only, that Ohio ranks so high for craft beer production.

The World of Beer Easton will hold its first Craft Brew Fest on Saturday (June 15). The event, which begins at 7 p.m. for general admission, will feature more than 150 craft beers and live music. Tickets are $35 for general admission, or $45 for VIP. Tickets include a tasting glass and 20 five-ounce samples. For more details or to get tickets, click here.

-- Columbus Business First reports that Zauber Brewing Co. is expanding and adding a full bar that will sell craft beer other than its own. “If all goes well,” brewer Geoff Towne told the publication, “we’ll be swinging hammers on July 2.” To read the full story, click here.

Beer & Sweat, the world's largest keg-only homebrew competition, will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year. The event, organized by the Bloatarian Brewing League of Cincinnati, will be held Aug. 17 at the Holiday Inn near the CVG Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport in Erlanger, Ky.

Homebrewing continues to grow in popularity. The fourth annual Homebrew Supply Shop Survey released this week by the American Homebrewers Association shows gross revenue increased by 26 percent for shops last year.

Other highlights include 80 percent of shops reporting an increase in sales of beginner kits, 43 percent of shops saying they have been open for less than three years and the sales of beer-making ingredients outpacing wine ingredients (35 percent compared to 21 percent).

Several Ohio breweries are competing in the sixth annual Global Warming Open, a competition sponsored by The Brewing News. The contest judges beers against each other in brackets -- similar to the NCAA March Madness tourney -- until there is one winner left.

The long-awaited restaurant and bar at Hoppin' Frog Brewery in Akron will open "around July 1," owner and brewer Fred Karm said. He didn't want to announce a specific date this week because of an upcoming health inspection.

Bartenders are now being trained and two chefs have been hired. Recipes also are being finalized, Karm said.

West Point Market in Akron will hold a special beer tasting from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday (June 15) featuring Hungry Bee ReHive Ale. The beer, made with honey from Geauga County, is the brainchild of Chef Kimberly McCune Gibson and brewed by Black Box Brewing Co. in Westlake.

-- The Daily Jeffersonian newspaper reports that plans are under way for the second annual BrewBQ in Cambridge. The event, set for Sept. 21, will include Buckeye Lake, Weasel Boy, Marietta and Millersburg breweries. To read the full story, click here.

Hoppin' Frog Brewery in Akron will release its B.O.R.I.S. The Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout aged in whiskey barrels as a brewery-only exclusive from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday (June 14). It's called B.O.R.I.S. Bairille Aois, which is Celtic for barrel aged.

"Aged in very special Irish whiskey barrels to add a super-smooth, buttery and complex whiskey character to our multi-award-winning B.O.R.I.S. The Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout," owner and brewer Fred Karm said in an email. "Cleaner and crisper than our standard Bourbon Barrel Aged B.O.R.I.S. Stout, this rare version is a testament to our hard work and dedication in bringing our customers the very best."

The Akron Zoo will host its first of three Brew at the Zoo tastings this year from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday (June 12). The entire zoo will be open and guests can enjoy beer from several local breweries, snacks and live music.

Beer samples will be offered from each brewery and full-sized beers will be available for $4. The participating breweries are: Indigo Imp, Thirsty Dog, Ohio, Elevator, Great Lakes, Alltech and Roobrew.

Listermann Brewing Co. in Cincinnati will celebrate its five-year anniversary with a customer appreciation and pig roast party at 5 p.m. Saturday (June 8) at the brewery. Dan Listermann launched his small brewery -- which now includes the Triple Digit brand -- in 2008 inside his homebrew shop.

Weasel Boy Brewing Co. in Zanesville will release three hop-oriented beers and a summer fruit beer this month (June).

War Dance Wheat IPA will be available at the brewpub and in the Columbus market starting next week. War Dance is a wheat-based India pale ale finished with Cascade and Saaz hops. It's 5.4 percent alcohol by volume and 40 IBU. Brewers Jay and Lori Wince described it as "a great summer IPA that drinks crisp and light in body with a pleasant bitterness, hop flavor and aroma."

The brewery also will release Weasel Meets Dog English-style IPA, Wiley Wolverine Rye Pale Ale and Weasel Paw Pawpaw Pale Ale in time for Ohio Brew Week, which runs from June 21 to 29.

Since opening earlier this year, the Granville Brewing Co. has focused on bottling its three Belgian-style beers. But the small nanobrewery — operating out of a former horse barn on co-owner and brewer Ross Kirk’s property in Granville — will release some beer on draft soon as it participates in local beer festivals and starts to raise its profile in central Ohio. (Granville Brewing will be at the upcoming Grandview Digfest.)

"We’ve been very quiet about our opening as a whole," Kirk said. So far, marketing has been limited to word-of-mouth.

Jackie O's Firefly Amber Ale and Chomo-lung-ma are now available in cans. Jackie O's, a brewpub and production brewery in Athens, fired up its new canning line a few weeks ago and started distributing the two beers mainly in the local community, brewer Brad Clark said.

The two beers have gone over well with beer fans, who have snatched up about 700 cases in three weeks.

UPDATED WITH PHOTOS:Elevator Brewing Co. in Columbus has opened a small tasting room at its production brewery on North Fourth Street. The taproom will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. every Saturday, closing when the nearby brewpub on North High Street opens.

The tasting room, which had a soft opening last Saturday, has 11 tap handles and sells beer by the pint and growler. Prices range from $3 to $6 a pint, and $10 to $15 for a growler fill. Elevator also plans to sell T-shirts, hats and other promotional items.

Thirsty Dog Brewing Co. in Akron is releasing two of its special draft-only beers in bottles. Both Citra Dog, an India pale ale, and Rail Dog, a smoked black lager, proved popular enough that they are going into bottle production, co-owner John Najeway said. (See both labels below.)

"They haven't been out there for mass audiences before," he said. "They've only been at special events and at the brewery. ... They are both great sessionable beers."

-- The Lima News reports on the ongoing beer battle in Ohio over big brewers owning wholesale distributors. The latest fight involves Anheuser-Busch's interest in buying a distributor in Lima. To read the full story, click here.